Last June, in a 25-to-one vote by city aldermen, New Haven passed a city resident ID card plan (PDF) proposed by Mayor John DeStefano (pictured, right). It is the first of its kind in the US; San Francisco is on the verge of approving such a plan as well, claiming to be the first big city to do so, following New Haven’s lead.

In Hartford, city councilor-elect Luis Cotto (pictured, left) published an opinion piece in yesterday’s Courant lauding New Haven’s plan and pushing Hartford to adopt an immigration policy as well.

Of recent pressing concern is a series of raids among Brazilian households in the city by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which Cotto described as disrupting a portion of the local economy, fostering fear and even triggering self-imposed house arrests in the Brazilian community.

Cotto told Christine Stuart in a November 11 New York Times article that “making the city a little more ‘immigrant-friendly’ was a priority, and he said that with his newly found influence, he was able to coordinate a meeting between the police chief and Brazilian residents to discuss the raids.” Cotto described that meeting a little in a November 14 blog post, adding that Mayor Eddie Perez was there to hear concerns.

From Cotto’s piece in yesterday’s Courant, co-written with Peter Goselin:

So far, Hartford has no policy at all. The need for one was highlighted by the early-morning raids that were recently carried out in the city’s Parkville neighborhood by the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency in collaboration with Hartford police.

Although the supposed purpose of the ICE-police collaboration was to find and apprehend a suspected felon, at least 21 undocumented immigrants, mostly Brazilian and none with outstanding criminal warrants, were detained as a result of the investigation.

As local police fanned out through the Parkville community asking for help in finding the suspect, federal agents used the search as a pretext for conducting raids on their own targets.

New Haven’s plans for a municipal ID card came on the heels of a city policy (Word doc) that has been in place there for about a year, striking a careful balance between law enforcement and the protection of civil rights. Police officers are instructed not to inquire about an immigrant’s legal status when such a person has been a victim of a crime, a witness to one, or in any way has merely approached the police for assistance.

“A community member’s potential status as an undocumented immigrant has no relation to the mission or goals of the New Haven Police Department,” the policy states. “No person shall be detained solely on the belief that he or she is not present legally in the United States, or that he or she has committed a civil immigration violation. There is no general obligation for a police officer to contact US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) regarding any person, unless that person is arrested on a criminal charge.”

From the New Haven Independent’s June 5 article by Melissa Bailey on the passage of just over $200,000 in private funding for the city’s plan:

The Elm City Resident Card, originally designed to help undocumented immigrants avoid getting robbed or assaulted, will be a combination of identification, debit card, library card, and a way to pay the parking meter, for all city residents young and old. …

“This is a social justice issue,” said Hill Alderman Jorge Perez [pictured, right] on the aldermanic floor. Like others, he’s been inundated with emails lashing out against the city, from outsiders who maintain that “millions of people are going to come to America through New Haven because we’re offering an ID.” Perez refuted that claim and thanked the mayor and Kica Matos [pictured, left] “for the leadership they have shown and the heat they have taken” in proposing the ID.

The New Haven ID card was rolled out last summer, costing ten dollars for adults and five dollars for children, with a debit capacity of $150. The main public safety goal, Bailey reported, was to enable immigrants to open bank accounts, and therefore not be as subject to risk carrying around large amounts of cash.

In San Francisco, to get the city ID card immigrants would be required to show an existing photo ID, as well as a recent bank statement or utility bill. The card does not supplant a driver’s license.

In New Haven, applicants can obtain a city ID by presenting a valid passport, a current US driver’s license, a current ID from a consultate, a voter registration photo ID with a birth certificate, a military ID card with a birth certificate, or for a child, just a birth certificate. Or they may present any two of the following: a national photo ID, a current foreign driver’s license, a current visa, or a photo taxpayer ID. To prove residence, applicants must present two of the following: a utility bill, an insurance bill, a bank statement, a check book, an employment pay stub, a local property tax statement, proof of a minor enrolled in public or private school, a voter registration card, or original documentation from a health or social services organization attesting to the fact that the applicant is a New Haven resident.

These types of changes, adapting to new social and economic pressures at a local level, do not come around by accident. They require vocal and sustained support and practical, sound proposals that can be implemented not just by bureaucrats or legislators but also by public safety personnel and a wide variety of city departments and services. Will Hartford step to the plate?

This entry was posted on Monday, November 19th, 2007 at 10:31 am and is filed under City Council, Community building, Demographics, Hartford, Public safety, Quality of life, Urban Compass.